Mobile computing devices such as smart phones, tablet computers and laptops often provide services to users based on current physical location. One of two mechanisms currently determines the current physical location of a mobile computing device in order to provide location based services. These mechanisms can be classified as providing either “fine” or “coarse” positions respectively. Fine location data is provided by Global Positioning System (“GPS”) receivers on the mobile computing devices, whereas course location data is provided by WiFi triangulation and/or cell tower triangulation.
GPS position data is very accurate, but a GPS receiver is slow to acquire a signal, and signals are not available inside most buildings, tunnels, or within urban areas with densely packed high-rises. For these reasons, most mobile devices also make use of WiFi triangulation or cell tower triangulation, to quickly acquire a less accurate location while attempting to acquire a GPS fix. Another concern with GPS data is user privacy. Using GPS data to track and possibly to store the exact locations of mobile device users over time raises major privacy concerns, and has recently become a source of serious user concern.
WiFi triangulation is done by comparing the relative strength of nearby WiFi devices as measured by a mobile device to previously recorded readings. These previous readings were taken by vehicles that recorded signal strengths while being driven through the area. The data recorded by these vehicles is not very accurate because the vehicles can only travel on public streets, and thus often take readings from a location that is further from a given WiFi device than the mobile devices in question. Additionally, the signal measuring vehicles are not able to frequently return to and rescan previously scanned areas, and thus stored readings are often not current. Furthermore, the gathering of WiFi data by a third party is of concern to some WiFi providers and end users.
Some companies supplement the vehicle gathered WiFi data with data recorded by certain mobile devices (e.g., Android devices) as users move around. This new source of data is helpful, but still has shortcomings because the mobile devices might be able to detect many WiFi devices/access points while not being able to obtain a GPS fix.
Cell tower triangulation uses cell phone tower signals rather than WiFi device signals, but is otherwise similar to WiFi triangulation and thus creates the same concerns. Other types of fixed position wireless devices can also be used for triangulation, and such use results in the same concerns as WiFi and/or cell phone tower triangulation.
It would be desirable to address these issues.